Strong Women, Strong Family 22/07/10

So I turned thirty-two last Friday and had an amazing birthday weekend filled with wonderful friends and family. It’s kind of been a long roller coaster Summer and I very much was looking forward to the weekend and just spending time with so many loved ones.

Even more so this past birthday proved to me once again how lucky I am to have the family that I do and to have such positive, strong women in my life. I get strength everyday from my mom who is beyond incredible. Without her support, love and generosity I don’t know where I would be today. And I’m so very proud of my little sister who is also wonderful and makes me so happy to have her in my life. Recently she sent me this on a day I so needed to read it…

You are not defined by your past. you are prepared by your past.
every challenge you’ve been through, every adversity you’ve faced, God deposited something on the inside. your character was being developed. strength was being increased. vision was being enlarged. with every difficulty, you can experience a new level of God’s goodness. you may have had unfair things happen, somebody did you wrong, or maybe poor choices brought trouble upon you. but your past does not define you. your past prepares you for a better future.

God would not have allowed you to go through difficult times if He didn’t have a purpose for them. He wouldn’t have allowed adversity to come if He didn’t already have a plan for good to come of it.

Even though you are going through challenges, even though something seems unfair, if you keep the right attitude, it will help you become who you were created to be and take you where you are supposed to go.

Nothing in your life is an accident. all things work together for your good. it doesn’t say that everything is good. you  may be uncomfortable. things may be taking longer than you wanted. but if you stay in faith, God will use your challenges for you good.

~ Joel Osteen

And the very next morning my mom sent me something similar also by Joel Osteen from his book “Your Best Life Now”….Great minds think alike! My mom also sent me something that I had written on a previous blog post. Something she printed and looks at everyday…

Today is going to be a sensational day! Can you feel it? What are you grateful for? What are you loving in life? Whatever “it” may be, celebrate it! Celebrate being alive and free and able to love all of these wonderful things before us!

Everyday I’m grateful for these two beautiful, amazing inspirations in my life. I’ve been blessed to call them family and today celebrate them and what they bring to my life!